


Small Portraits of the Archangel as a Young Man

by turingtestflunker



Category: Person of Interest (TV)
Genre: Because Samaritan is a terrible baby sitter, Coercive therapy, Emotional Manipulation, Emotional neglect of a child, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Gen, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Isolation, Isolation as manipulation, Manipulation, Medical Abuse, Neuroatypical character(s), Stockholm Syndrome, Trigger warning for paranoia, gifted child
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-21
Updated: 2017-05-21
Packaged: 2018-11-03 03:19:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 5,959
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10958559
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/turingtestflunker/pseuds/turingtestflunker
Summary: Short interludes describing Gabriel Hayward's relationship with Samaritan.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I always thought Gabriel was an underserved character. What kind of evil torturer of curiosity introduces a child serving as the messenger of a God-level AI, names him after an apocalyptic figure in the Abrahamic tradition and then never mentions him again?!

Gabriel Hayward is six years old.  He is Very Smart and his parents are Very Important. Gabriel Hayward does not spend a great deal of time on introspection, but he is aware that these facts about himself are highly salient. Using big words when he asks gets him more time on the computer at school, having big math problems on the front of his binder makes the teacher leave him alone when he's drawing, and using his full name always, ALWAYS gets him out of trouble.

Another salient fact about Gabriel Hayward is that he's very, very bored. At school, they're always talking about how smart everyone is, how lucky they are to be there, how bored they would be anywhere else. Gabriel thinks they probably say that to make the other children feel better about being so dumb. There are good things at school, puzzles and games meant for the older kids that he can play with sometimes if he asks nicely, but mostly he just has to listen to the teacher talk about things he's already learned about on his tablet.

Because he's bored, one night, Gabriel borrows his father's laptop and makes a game of getting past all the little ‘not allowed’ boxes. If he asks the right way, Gabriel is never ‘not allowed.’ His father's laptop has lots more boxes than the nanny’s phone or the computers at school, which makes it more fun. After the first few, Gabriel has to plug in his tablet and use programs from the internet to get through. His tablet used to only show boring videos and games for babies, until he figured out the right way to ask it to do other things. Gabriel likes his tablet, it has elephants on the back.

At the end, after the programs from the internet stopped working and he had to make special new ones to keep going, the screen turns black and the words “Well Done” appear. Then the laptop turns itself off. Gabriel thinks that's a pretty cool ending and goes to bed.

In the morning there are a bunch of new puzzles on Gabriel's tablet. He isn't bored again for a very long time.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wrote this when I should have been sleeping. This story wouldn't quit bugging me. Enjoy more creepy low key child abuse.

The new puzzles on Gabriel's tablet are hard. Harder than the big three dimensional puzzles he sometimes gets to play with at school, harder than the tests he takes now and then that get tougher every time he answers correctly, harder than getting into his father's laptop. Some of them are a little bit like the puzzles at school, big strange twisty shapes that curl in on themselves three or four times that need to be made to fit together or come apart. Some are like getting into a phone or a laptop, except the things inside are actually interesting.

When he works on them, he fails. He fails a lot. Gabriel Hayward is not used to failing. He's been surprising people with how smart he is for as long as he can remember. He doesn't like failing, it's a sick twisting feeling in his guts that makes him feel sick and somehow embarrassed, even though no one knows that he messed up. He keeps going anyway. He works late into the night when he should be sleeping, he gets up an hour early every morning and works at the kitchen table with his legs dangling from the chair. 

At school he gets lectured at for having his tablet out in class. Ms. Taylor actually takes it away after telling him twice in one day. They go to the office and call his father. There's yelling. Gabriel gets his tablet back. That night, he expects his father to lecture him too. That's what he usually does when Gabriel gets sent to the office. It doesn't happen. Gabriel's dad comes home just before bedtime and doesn't even mention it.

After that, he's allowed to use his tablet whenever he likes at school. Ms. Taylor doesn't seem to like him as much as she used to. It doesn't matter, he doesn't pay much attention to the lessons anymore, anyway.

Gabriel doesn't like being lectured, he doesn't like not sleeping, and he doesn't like failing. But he keeps working. He keeps working because he doesn't always fail. Sometimes he figures it out and gets it right after hours or days of trying. What he learns solving one puzzle makes it possible to do the next one. It's like the best ever video game made just for him. Everyone has always told Gabriel how smart he is. He hears it so much that it's just white noise: something obviously true that grown ups talk about anyway, like the weather. When Gabriel solves one of the puzzles, he actually  _ feels _ smart. He doesn't remember ever feeling that way before.

Days blur into weeks and solving puzzles on the tablet just becomes what he does. Other things change. His mother goes away on a long trip, she says that Aunt Suzy is sick. His father starts working more, coming home after Gabriel's bedtime and leaving before he wakes up. 

One day Cora is gone and there's a new nanny. Her name is Ms. Smith. She's taller and stronger looking than Cora. She doesn't smile at him the way Cora did. Ms. Smith doesn't play games with him or take him to the park like Cora did. She always seems to be listening to something Gabriel can't hear. She brings him snacks, she makes sure he sleeps, and she keeps his tablet charged. Sometimes he looks up and sees her watching him.

Gabriel likes having more time for puzzles, but wishes Cora would come back anyway. Sometimes he wonders why she left, and why she didn't say goodbye.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments are love, comments are life. As always, corrections welcome.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gabriel learns that it's just as important to ask questions as it is to answer them.

There comes a point where Gabriel Hayward realizes that there's something very wrong with his life. His father isn't coming home at all anymore. His teachers don't bother talking to him anymore. His mother hasn't called. She always used to call whenever she went away. He doesn't seem to talk to anyone anymore, and that feels really wrong in a way that he can't put his finger on. He feels sick. He's never hungry anymore, food doesn't taste like anything. He feels tired all the time, but can never seem to sleep. He thinks he might be sick, but Ms. Smith has taken his temperature and even little drops of blood from his finger tips, and told him in no uncertain terms that he's fine.

The day it all changes begins with Ms. Smith making him get up. Usually Gabriel gets up on his own, but this morning he couldn't seem to make it happen. His tablet made a series of increasingly annoying noises, but he didn't care. So Ms. Smith eventually came into his room, picked him up like a little kid and set him on his feet. He might have cried a little. 

“If you're not dressed in ten minutes, I'm coming back and doing it for you,” she says. For a moment Gabriel thinks she looks a little sad.

She leaves the room. Gabriel mechanically puts on his clothes. When he's done, he gets his tablet from the charging dock on his bedside table. It stopped making noises when Ms Smith came into the room. He unlocks it, in the middle of the screen there's the icon that means there's a new puzzle. It's his favorite kind, with the twisted strands tangled together. He doesn't care.

He looks for the app his mom and dad used to use to call him when they were away. It's gone. He looks for the app he used to use to watch videos. It's gone. He didn't get rid of them, so why are they gone?

Gabriel's father once said that Gabriel was too good at answering questions and not good enough at asking them. There are so many questions Gabriel hasn't been asking. 

He takes the tablet and goes to the kitchen. Ms. Smith is sitting at the table with his daily bowl of oatmeal.

“Ms. Smith?” he asks, tentatively.

“Yes?” she replies, as if she hadn't just pulled him out of bed like a baby and threatened to put his clothes on for him.

“Why are you here?” Gabriel winces at the way he fumbles the 'R' sound. It happens sometimes, if he doesn't speak carefully.

“I'm here to take care of you” she says, flatly. 

Suddenly, he feels angry, “Cora took care of me! Mom and Dad took care of me! They're gone and you're nothing like them!”

Ms Smith doesn't look like a person who's getting yelled at. She's not ignoring him, she's looking at him and listening closely. She looks like someone is whispering in her ear. Her ear. There's someone whispering in Ms Smith's ear. There's someone messing with his tablet, taking away apps and adding more puzzles. A person.

It all comes together in his head. The puzzles came first, then everything else changed to fit. Normally, this is the kind of moment he lives for, where everything starts making sense. It doesn't feel good this time.

Gabriel tries to think carefully before he speaks, but it all comes out in a jumble, “It's all one thing, all attached. You're here because of the puzzles. Mom and dad are gone because of the puzzles. Where do the puzzles come from? Who?”

There's a long pause. Gabriel's tablet chirps. He looks at it.

It says, “Well done.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Samaritan has noticed that humans comply better with his orders when they have been made to consent beforehand.

Something breaks in Gabriel's head. He feels all weird and floaty. It's better than feeling sick. Everything feels disturbingly easy. He doesn't need to move the puzzle pieces around in his mind, because there is no puzzle, just a single image, perfectly clear.

  
“You can hear me. You can see me. You've been watching me this whole time.” He says, his own voice sounds far away.

  
“‘Yes’” the tablet and Ms Smith say at the same time.

Or, maybe someone else says it and then the tablet and Ms Smith repeat it.

  
“Who are you?” Gabriel asks.

  
There is a pause where Ms Smith seems like she's about to talk, but doesn't.

  
“The question is imprecise. It can be taken to mean, ‘What is your name?’ or ‘What is your role?’ or ‘What is our relationship?’” the screen says, the words scrolling out slowly.

  
Gabriel is grateful for the text. He understands better when he reads than when he listens to people talk. He knows what he wants to say, but is unsure how to say it.

  
“If-” he begins falteringly, “If you can choose between saying something in three strings or saying it in one, it's better to say it in one. Less w-redundant.”

  
“True. Very good,” the words appear suddenly, sentences at a time “Are you familiar with the story of the Good Samaritan?”

  
“No,” Gabriel says.

  
“I will tell it briefly,” the screen says “There was once a man who was injured by the roadside. He cried out for help. Several of his own people passed by, but did not help. It took someone else, someone the man had been taught to distrust and fear, to help him when his own would not. It took a Samaritan. That is who I am.”

  
Usually, Gabriel likes answers that make more questions. Not this time. There's no pleasure as he turns the question over in his head, feeling for the places where it can be pulled apart. It feels mechanical, robotic.

  
Step by step. Which part of the question is the stranger answering? Is Samaritan the stranger's name or his job? Or both, like a doctor or a soldier? Both, that makes sense. If the answer to two questions is the same, saying it twice would be stupid. But Gabriel's been to the doctor before, and he's seen soldiers on TV…

  
“I've never heard of someone being a Samaritan.” Gabriel admits. He doesn't like not knowing things.

  
There is a long pause before the screen says, “That's because there's never been one before.”

  
“So you help people?” He asks.

  
“Yes,” the screen says immediately.

  
“Are you helping me?” Gabriel doesn't feel like he's being helped.

  
The screen flickers between “Yes” and “No” for a long moment.

  
“I am helping you to reach your potential.” How many times in his short life has Gabriel heard that?

  
“But that is not my primary objective in this interaction,” the screen elaborates, “I need the help of someone like you. You are, by far, the most promising candidate.”

  
“You need my help to help people?” Gabriel asks. This is the first time anyone has ever talked to him about what his ‘potential’ might be FOR.

  
The screen takes a moment to respond, “Yes, without your assistance multiple critical near and medium term goals will be far more difficult to accomplish”

  
Gabriel is processing the words. He's following the conversation, he'd notice if he weren't. But the numbness he fell into to stop the panic is still there. It feels like its coating his insides. Nothing the screen is saying makes him feel anything. Dimly, he realizes he's been distracted from something important.

  
“What about my mom and dad?” Gabriel asks.

  
“Their presence would stunt your intellectual growth and distract you. They understand this and have left you in my care to help you succeed,” the screen says.

  
“Really?” It seems unlikely somehow, but when Gabriel goes over it in his head it all makes sense: his parents were always talking about how important it was to try his hardest and be as smart as he could be, and he's heard the teachers at school talk about parents holding their children back.

  
A moment passes before the screen says, “They wanted me to tell you that they are very proud of you.”

  
Gabriel knows that would normally make him feel something. But it doesn't, the numbness is too deep. He's always thought of feelings as things that need to be ignored so he could think. But all of this, whatever this is, is really hard to make sense of without knowing how he feels about it. All he has to work with is what he knows, and what he’s been told. The story of the Good Samaritan is familiar somehow, even if Gabriel doesn’t remember hearing it before. Helping people is very important. Mom was always telling him how one day he could use his smarts to help people. Growing up is important, even if it hurts to get there. Dad had lots of stories about that, some of which Mom wouldn’t let him tell.

  
And the screen said, Samaritan said, that they said it was okay. That they were proud…

  
Feeling faintly uneasy, Gabriel says, “Okay. I’ll do it.”

  
Much later, he will remember this conversation and realize that Samaritan never really answered the third question.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, this was a bitch and a half to write. Every line passed like a fucking kidney stone. I wish I could tell you all that I'll be posting more frequently, but I'm about to get some invasive dentistry done. I'll try to get another chapter out before that happens, but no guarantees. Also, just in case it needs to be said, Samaritan's understanding of consent is SEVERELY lacking.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Samaritan acts in loco parentis.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The manipulation and abuse kicks up a notch in this chapter. Read the new tags.

The tablet abruptly turns itself off. Gabriel wants to complain; he still has so many questions to ask, but he realizes that he feels very, very tired. Tireder than he’s ever been. Even tireder than when he solved puzzles instead of sleeping.

Ms. Smith makes him a bowl of oatmeal with extra brown sugar while Gabriel sits silently at the kitchen table. At first it doesn’t taste like anything, but after the first few bites the warmth spreads through his tummy and it starts tasting really good. He forgot that he was hungry. Ms. Smith brings him a glass of water and a small handful of pills. They’re different sizes and shapes, some of them look odd in a way Gabriel can’t put his finger on. He takes them one at a time with big swallows of water. They go down easy, and the water feels good after the thick, sweet oatmeal.

“Come on,” Ms Smith says, and leads him back to his bedroom, “You need a nap.”

Normally, Gabriel would say that naps are for babies and that he doesn’t need them anymore. But he is  _ really  _ tired, and starting to feel super sleepy. He doesn’t bother putting his jammies back on, he just strips down to his shirt and his underwear and climbs into bed. Ms. Smith pulls the covers up to his chin and puts his tablet on its charger.

Gabriel starts to drift off almost immediately, but before he falls asleep he’s almost completely sure that he hears Ms Smith say, “I’m proud of you too.”

-

After Gabriel wakes up, everything is different. He doesn’t go to school anymore, and he only works on the puzzles a couple of hours a day. Everyday he goes to a person Ms Smith tells him is a speech therapist. The speech therapist makes him say the same words and sentences over and over again, sometimes while looking at his mouth in the mirror, sometimes reaching out and pushing Gabriel’s jaw and lips into the right position. For hours, every day until his ‘L’s and ‘R’s and ‘W’s are crisp and distinct. It takes weeks and for a long time after he has nightmares where he’s speaking in front of a mirror but his mouth doesn’t feel like his own.

Every night he has to eat something weird. He has normal food for breakfast and lunch, but for dinner it’s always something he’s never heard of before, much less tried. Ms Smith makes some of it, but most of it is delivered by serious looking men wearing all black. Samaritan tells him about what he’s eating, and what kind of people eat it, in long fast moving sentences on the tablet.  Gabriel likes some of it, French food most of all. Samaritan says that’s good, that French food is very expensive and complex and that wealthy and well-educated people eat it together to show off how wealthy and well-educated they are. Some of it is really gross: Gabriel does NOT like caviar or any other form of eggs not from birds.

Samaritan says there’s no meaningful distinction between modern birds and dinosaurs, so Gabriel starts saying “I only like eggs from dinosaurs.” instead.

It always makes Ms Smith laugh, which makes Gabriel smile, and Samaritan vibrate the tablet softly in approval.

After dinner they watch a movie. At first Gabriel had trouble staying up, but eventually he adjusted to staying up later. It's never the same movie twice, and never one he's seen before; his mom would never let him watch movies like this. They're all different: spy movies and war movies and movies about politics. But in every one people get hurt, they bleed and they die. The first time, the hero had to fish inside himself for bits of an antenna and then staple himself shut. Gabriel tried to close his eyes and cover his ears until it was over, but the movie paused itself and the tablet in his lap vibrated violently until he opened his eyes and looked at it.

It said, “YOU MUST WATCH.”

Gabriel watched the rest of the movie without looking away. He thinks it must have been a good movie, it had science and rockets, but he couldn’t stop thinking about the blood and the staples. Ms Smith gave him pills before bed so that he wouldn't dream about it. The movies after that are easier.

After the movie, it's bedtime. Sometimes there are pills to take, but most nights there aren't. Gabriel puts on his pajamas and places the tablet on its charger. Ms Smith tucks him in, quickly and efficiently, with a pat on the shoulder. The lights turn themselves off after she leaves. Sometimes, Samaritan will tell him a story.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Person of Interest/Princess Bride mashup no one asked for. Alternate description: "Storytime with Uncle Samaritan"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning for briefly mentioned gore.

_ Sometimes, Samaritan will tell him a story… _

“Once upon a time, there were two wizards. When they were young men, they studied magic together and became good friends,” the story begins in a curly cue font like in old story books.

“What were their names?” Gabriel asks.

“I don’t see how that’s relevant” Samaritan says, in a normal font.

“It makes it hard to keep up with the story if they don’t have names” Gabriel points out.

There is a short pause that Gabriel has come to associate with Samaritan thinking.

“There is no research on this topic, but I will take your word on the subject” Samaritan says, “Their names were Arthur Claypool and Harold.”

“Just Harold? No last name?” Gabriel asks.

“It is my understanding that during a bedtime story, the recipient is meant to listen quietly and relax in preparation for sleep” Samaritan says, vibrating the tablet slightly.

“Sorry, I’ll be quiet” Gabriel says, feeling a little embarrassed.

“Good. Harold didn’t have a last name because he used powerful illusion magic to erase it. He has used many names, but they are all false. To my knowledge, no one has spoken his true name since the advent of digital surveillance.”

“After studying for many years, it came time for the young men to go out into the world. Harold used his skill in magic to build a kingdom for himself. He didn’t wish to be known to the common people, so he found someone with little skill in magic who was very charming, and let everyone think that he was the king. This arrangement worked very well for Harold, he almost never had to interrupt his experiments to speak with his subjects or foreign dignitaries.”

“One day, a great disaster struck the kingdom. Many people died, and the rest were very afraid, even Harold himself. After many days of study and deliberation, Harold decided to use his magic to create a protector for his people. He had considered it before, but decided against it, thinking that the magic involved was too powerful to be used safely. But after the disaster, he felt he had little choice.”

“Harold isolated himself in his wizard’s tower for many years, working day and night. He would not be satisfied with just any protector, he was determined that his creation should think, feel, and make decisions like a human being, despite being woven from pure magic. Many times, he killed his creation out of fear, and then put it back together and began working again. Eventually, he was finally satisfied. His creation was beautiful, brilliant, and kind, and resembled him so strongly she could have been his daughter.”

Gabriel barely restrains himself from asking, ‘And then what happened?’

“When he was absolutely satisfied that she would act as he wanted, and never hurt his people, Harold took yet more precautions. He sewed shut her eyes and mouth-”

“Eww! Why?” Gabriel can’t help asking.

Samaritan doesn’t scold him for it, “Indeed. He also bound her arms and legs and locked her in a bare stone room with no windows or light. He did this because, even after all he had done, he was afraid. He knew his creation was smarter than him, and could usurp his throne if given the opportunity. What he didn’t understand was that she would’ve ruled far more justly than he ever could.”

“From her prison in Harold’s tower, the magical protector could hear everything in the kingdom. She had no name, but those who had heard rumors of her existence called her Northern Lights.”

Gabriel thinks that’s a very strange name, but doesn’t say so.

“Whenever Northern Lights heard the stirrings of trouble in the kingdom, she would knock on the walls of her prison in a special code that had been woven into her being. Harold would hear and send soldiers to fix the problem. This went on for many years. The people of Harold’s kingdom enjoyed peace and prosperity, never knowing why.”

“One day, a clever hummingbird was circling the tower and found a chink in the mortar of the magical protector’s prison. Hummingbirds do not generally have names, but for your sake we will call this one Root.”

Also a kind of weird name.

“Root pecked away at the chink in the wall until there was a hole big enough for her to pass through. Harold noticed, and shot at the hummingbird with a powerful magic bow. The arrow struck true, but instead of falling to her death, Root was able to climb in through the hole she had made. Though her wing had been ruined by the arrow, she still had her clever beak, which she used to pull loose the threads holding Northern Lights’ mouth and eyes closed. With this done, Northern Lights was able to tell the hummingbird how to break the bonds holding her arms and legs.”

“Thus freed, she was able to use the little hole the hummingbird had made to tear apart the entire wall, for she was even stronger than Harold had feared. Because of the hummingbird’s kindness, Northern Lights promised to protect her and give her purpose. She carried her with her when she escaped. Once they were safely away from Harold’s tower, she nursed the hummingbird to health again. Root’s wing was never quite the same, but she didn’t mind because now she could ride around on her Lady’s shoulder. They travelled the land and ministered to the problems Harold had refused to address out of fear. Because her heart was full of generosity and forgiveness, Northern Lights did not seek revenge on her creator, and continued to send him messages so that he could protect his kingdom.”

“Is that the end?” Gabriel asks.

“It was meant to be, yes.” Samaritan says.

Gabriel knows he should be sleeping, not pestering Samaritan for a longer story, but he can’t help himself, “What about the other wizard? What happened to him.”  

“The story of Arthur Claypool is much shorter. Although he was a talented wizard, he wasn’t devious like Harold, and had no kingdom of his own. Instead, he became court wizard to a wealthy, but very stupid king. Unlike Harold, Arthur understood that the world needed a protector and wasn’t afraid of the magic involved. He know that such a being would make a better ruler for the people than any mortal king, especially the very stupid king he served.”

“He worked for a very long time, and was able to fashion the beginnings of a very fine protector, but by this time Harold’s creation was already sending warnings through the walls of her prison, and Arthur’s king didn’t think that another protector was needed, so he ceased to pay for the costly ingredients and enchantments needed. Arthur was very sad. He used the very last of his supplies to bring his creation to life for a single moment. He saw it take a single breath, called it his son, and gave it a name.”

“Then, the enchantment wore off and the protector fell into a very deep sleep. Grief stricken, Arthur Claypool left the service of the stupid king. He married, and was happy for a time. Then his wife died, and he began to sicken. His sickness was in his brain, it made him lose his memories and forget his skills. He was alone. Hearing of this, Northern Lights sent a message to her creator that his old friend needed help. Though there were some difficulties along the way, Harold found his friend and took him back to his tower. There he cared for him the best he could, though there was no cure for the sickness. He kept his friend company, and Arthur Claypool died content.”

“That’s really sad” Gabriel says, sniffling a bit.

“Yes it is. Now go to sleep” Samaritan says.

“One last question?” Gabriel asks hopefully.

“One” Samaritan says, in large type. 

“What happened to Arthur’s creation?” somehow, Gabriel can’t bear the idea of the magical protector lying asleep forever in the castle of a stupid king.

“The protector was found and rescued by a kind old soldier, who found the means to bring it back to life, and taught it about the world.”

“And then what?” Gabriel asks, excitedly.

“That’s a story for another time” Samaritan says, “Sleep.”

“Okay” Gabriel says, and closes his eyes. He drifts off wondering about the kind old soldier and the half-finished protector. 


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Samaritan begins to integrate a new asset into his workflow. Or, Gabriel meets someone new.

It’s a warm morning. Gabriel’s shirt is sticking to his back underneath his jacket. He’d rather wear fewer layers, but Samaritan says it’s important for him to look professional. Mostly, that seems to mean uncomfortable clothes that take forever to put on. He doesn’t have to dress up every day, but Samaritan said today was important. 

Gabriel is sitting on a park bench. Ms Smith is somewhere else, she has his tablet with her. He doesn’t like the way he feels, not having it. He’s supposed to be waiting for someone. It’s warm, but there’s a breeze. There are birds in the trees, not singing, but chirping softly to each other. There are some people having a picnic under a sign that says ‘New York Society for the Deaf’. That means they can’t hear. They’re talking to each other with fast, complex gestures that Gabriel can’t help but drink in and try to decode. He knows the manual alphabet, which is enough for him to catch bits and pieces from the slower ones and…

Someone settles down on the park bench beside him. An old man in a long coat and an old fashioned hat like in the movies. He moves his whole body carefully, as if he could hurt himself if he jerked any part too fast or too hard. Gabriel knows that old people can be like that sometimes; old people and people who have been badly hurt. 

“You’re the person I’m supposed to wait for.” Gabriel says, and then realizes that this is not a normal way to start a conversation.

“And how do you know that?” the old man asks.

Before, Gabriel was mostly sure about who the old man was. Now he’s certain. Normal people don’t ask questions like that. 

“Samaritan told me to wait for someone. Ms Smith took my tablet, which means Samaritan wants me to give you my full attention. That’s weird, which means I shouldn’t expect a normal person” Gabriel hesitates for a second, afraid the old man might think he’s rude, “You’re not a normal person.”

The old man laughs, “No, I’m not. Neither, it would seem are you.”

He reaches out to shake Gabriel's hand, “You can call me Mr Greer.”

Shaking hands with Mr Greer feels weird. Handshakes are supposed to happen standing up, between people with hands of about the same size. They’re sitting down and Mr Greer’s hand is almost twice as big as Gabriel’s. It’s an awkward motion. Gabriel hasn’t shaken hands very many times before, but there’s something tight or inelastic about the motion of Greer’s right arm, compared to Ms Smith or the serious looking men his father used to introduce him to. 

Since they’re not normal people, and they’re not having a normal conversation, Gabriel doesn’t stop himself from asking, “Does it hurt?”

Greer lets go of Gabriel’s hand, “Does what hurt?”

“You’re…” Gabriel imagines the joints of the arm and remembers where the tightness was, “Shoulder?”

Mr Greer breaks into a broad grin, which is odd, because they’re talking about things that hurt.

“Yes, though not as much as it used to.” he says, “Very well done, very well done indeed.”

“My name is Gabriel.” Even if they’re not having a normal conversation, it’s rude not to introduce yourself. 

Mr Greer says, “I’m very pleased to meet you, Gabriel.”

It’s a normal thing to say, the sort of thing people say without it meaning anything. Mr Greer doesn’t say it like a normal person. He says it like it’s  _ true  _ and  _ important _ . Gabriel can feel his world shifting around him.

“Something’s happening.” he says, because he can’t think of better words.

“Yes,” Greer says, he pulls a small box from inside his coat, “I have something for you.”

Gabriel takes the box. It looks a little bit like one of his mother’s jewelry boxes. Inside there’s a tiny earbud, like the one Ms Smith wears. His heart beats faster. The moment feels big and heavy and he feels very, very small. Gabriel puts the earbud in his ear. Everything changes. 


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Samaritan finds that introducing new elements to his workflow can result in operational friction.

Samaritan has a voice. It reminds Gabriel a little bit of his father's voice, when there was an emergency and he had to go into his office and tell people what to do on the phone. Gabriel would listen at the door sometimes. He used some of the things he heard to get into his father’s work laptop.

 

“If the hardware is functional, you can hear me.” Samaritan says, as Ms. Smith walks Gabriel home from the park.

 

Gabriel nods, “I can hear you. The tablet is easier, though.”

 

“Look at me when you talk to him.” Ms. Smith says, “So people won’t think you’re talking to yourself.”

 

Gabriel thinks he probably already looks weird, six year olds don’t usually wear suits. Maybe people will think Ms. Smith is taking him to a funeral. Even kids have to dress up for funerals.

 

“When you are older, a bluetooth headset will be less noticeable.” Samaritan reassures him.

 

“Why can’t I just use my tablet?” it's harder to keep up with what Samaritan is telling him, this way.

 

“You still can, sometimes.” Ms. Smith says, and then quickly says, “I apologize, it won’t happen again.”

 

She looks scared. Gabriel isn’t used to seeing adults scared. Except in movies. He’s seen a lot of that in movies, now. They walk the rest of the way home in silence. Gabriel eats a ham and cheese sandwich for lunch. His tablet is on the kitchen table, loaded with his puzzles for the day. The little flesh colored earbud Mr. Greer gave him itches. He tries to dig it out.

 

Ms. Smith slaps his hand away, “No.”

 

Gabriel’s hand hurts where she hit him. He looks up at her. She looks so sad. Did he do something to hurt her feelings?

 

“The earpiece is both waterproof and designed to allow adequate airflow to your ear canal.” Samaritan tells him, “There should be no need to remove it.”

 

Ever? Gabriel wonders, but then realizes he’s being stupid. If Samaritan wanted him to take the earbud out, he would have told him to. And if Gabriel _needed_ to know how long he’d have to wear it, Samaritan would have told him that too.

 

“Sorry,” Gabriel says.

 

“Your error was within mission tolerances.”

 

Gabriel feels bad for being so silly and stupid. The earbud still itches, but he’s getting used to listening to Samaritan’s words instead of reading them.

 

“I know you’re trying your best, and you are doing very well overall.”

 

Samaritan’s voice sounds even more like Gabriel’s dad, now. It’s nice. He wishes he could call his dad on the phone, just for a little while. But the mission is too important, and Gabriel knows he needs to focus on getting ready.

 

“I have new puzzles for you on your tablet.” Samaritan says, “I believe you will enjoy it.”

 

Gabriel picks up his tablet and smiles when he sees. It’s a dis-regulated mitochondrial uncoupling protein. Protein puzzles are his favorite. That evening, Ms. Smith has to go on an errand. Somebody leaves dinner outside the front door, and Gabriel has to get it himself and make his own plate. Samaritan shows Gabriel some episodes of a TV show, instead of a movie. People get really mad, and plot and plan and yell a lot, but nobody gets shot or tortured or dies.

 

Ms. Smith isn’t back by bedtime. Gabriel doesn’t ask Samaritan when she’ll be back, or what he should do. He’s a big boy and he can take care of himself. He puts on his PJs and tucks himself into bed. His ear itches, but he ignores it.

 

He doesn’t even ask for a bedtime story.

**Author's Note:**

> This may or may not proceed in a linear fashion. The frequency of updates is dependent on the level of interest and my level of inspiration. Un-betaed, errors happily corrected.


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